Curved entryways are typical of Victorian-style homes. The house at 66 Franklin St. is a historic property. (ERICA MILLER/emiller@saratogian.com)

SARATOGA SPRINGS -- The Design Review Commission this week will invite the public to weigh in on whether it should allow the owner of 66 Franklin St. -- a property in the city's most historic residential district -- to tear the house down.

The Winans-Crippen House, as it is known, has been sitting vacant for years and owner Joe Boff is the second developer to say it is beyond repair.

The Saratoga Springs Preservation Foundation, however, disagrees.

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"It certainly needs some work," but it could be restored, city Preservation Foundation Executive Director Samantha Bosshart said. "The owner chose to buy this property knowing where it was located and that it was a contributing member of a historic district."

The Design Review Commission will hold a public hearing Wednesday on Boff's demolition permit. The issue has been in the commission's hands for years, in part because Boff withdrew his application for demolition when the commission asked him for a Draft Environmental Impact Statement, something he said has never been required for a house demolition before.

"I threw up my hands," Boff said.

Since then, though, he has decided to pick the ball back up. His attorney completed the impact statement and submitted it to the commission for approval.

Boff, a developer who has restored two historic buildings in the city, purchased the Winans-Crippen House from Lewis Titterton four years ago this month with the intention of restoring it.

He said that after talking to numerous builders and paying a local architect who specializes in restorations to come up with a plan, he couldn't make the numbers work.

One builder told him it would cost $2 million to restore the 2,500-square-foot house, which he estimated would be worth about $500,000 when the job was done.

"There were a lot of people who tried, all with good intentions, and they just couldn't do it," Titterton said. "Sometimes the realities of life and the costs just overwhelm good intentions."

Boff's estimate of the restoration cost is higher, but he also feels the home's ultimate value would be greater. Still, the difference between the two numbers is similar to what Titterton's builders came up with.

City Code Enforcement Officer Dan Cogan, who has restored historic buildings himself, likened it to restoring a K-car.

"You could find a K-car at a junkyard and spend $20,000 to $25,000 and have a perfectly restored K-car and it would be worth a couple thousand bucks," he said, standing in front of 66 Franklin St. last week. "This would take a lot of money to restore."

Inside, he pointed to water-damaged beams from holes in the roof, as well as a broken steam-heating system that has since been removed.

"That's rotten ... that's a structural failure ... that's rotten," he said, pointing out features with his flashlight while touring the house. "If you took off every piece that needed to be replaced, you wouldn't have much left."

The building was gutted by Titterton's workers, who stripped it of the lath and plaster, something Cogan said affected its structural integrity.

There are floors that are slanted one way or another, and Cogan advised against stepping on some sections. Standing inside on any given floor, light from outside can be seen through holes in the walls.

"This is a public safety issue, not a historic issue," he said.

On the other hand, Bosshart said engineer Donald Friedman of Old Structures Engineering conducted two inspections of the property in 2009 and 2010 and, while he cited significant problems with the building both times, he said it did not represent a public safety hazard.

Bosshart said she toured the building after it was gutted by Titterton.

"I didn't feel unsafe in it or that it couldn't be preserved," she said.

She, too, acknowledged that the gutting of the house had a significantly negative impact on it.

By court mandate, support structures have been built inside to hold up portions of the second story. In some cases, even those newly added two-by-fours are showing wear and tear and are bending under the strain.

"You can keep putting in temporary walls, but gravity will win this one," Cogan said. "Gravity wins every time, in the end."

Bosshart said she hopes the building is sold to someone who is willing and able to restore it before that happens. The Saratoga Springs Preservation Foundation is offering a $50,000 grant to anyone who rehabilitates the house.

Boff, on the other hand, is hoping the Design Review Commission eventually grants the demolition permit.

The commission will meet at 7 p.m. Wednesday in City Hall. It is unclear if it will vote on whether to accept or reject Boff's impact statement at that meeting.